Jess Todd moved to Springfield, Mo., franchise

TODD SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Jess Todd's truck is sitting in a parking lot in Palm Beach, Fla.

The former University of Arkansas pitcher said his parents delivered it two weeks ago. The 22- year-old thought he'd spend his first full season of professional baseball pitching for the Palm Beach Cardinals in the Florida State League, so he got them to drive from their Kilgore home to Florida and drop it off.

He should have known better. "I don't know what's going to happen with it now," Todd said as he slipped off his new Springfield Cardinals jersey 1,200 miles away Tuesday. "But you just have to go with the flow."

Jess, the son of Tom and Kim Todd, was moved to Double-A Springfield this week, after only a scant amount of time with the St. Louis Cardinals' Palm Beach team.

The 2004 Kilgore High School graduate is scheduled to start on the mound, his first with Springfield, when the Cardinals play the Northwest Arkansas Naturals tonight at 7 p.m.

During his assignment at Palm Beach, Todd did very well. He went 3-0, with a 1.65 ERA. He also had a save.

In 27 1/3 innings pitched, he allowed 29 hits, 13 runs (nine earned), and no home runs to the opposition. He walked just seven over that period, and struck out 35 (a team high by far).

Folks in Arkansas are similar to Kilgore in that they are fans of Todd's. The pitcher spent just one season at Arkansas before being drafted by the Cardinals in the second round of last year's Major League Baseball draft, but made it a memorable one, including striking out 17 batters in a single game during the Southeastern Conference Tournament, a record for the Razorbacks in a single game, and the new SEC Tournament's singlegame record.

Todd is just one former Kilgore athlete doing very well in his athletic pursuits - several former Bulldogs are in college athletics. Anyone who has an update on other Kilgore-area athletes is encouraged to call News Herald sports editor Mitch Lucas at (903) 984-2593, or contact him by emailing him at sports@kilgorenewsherald.com.

Neiswanger is a sports writer for the Northwest Arkansas Morning News.